FAQs for Scholars (J-1 and H-1B)

Please contact your home country embassy or consulate in the U.S. to let them know your situation. You may use the website here to find foreign consulates in the U.S.

Also, please work with your Yale host department to see if you can extend your appointment at Yale temporarily. To extend your DS-2019 for J visa you will need to have extended health insurance, funding at the Yale minimum levels and an extended academic appointment. The university is committed to assisting international scholars however we can, including making special arrangements whenever possible.

If you have not already, please contact your OISS adviser. OISS is working with the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs and various Dean’s Offices in order to explore ways in which the university might allow special extension provisions. In extreme cases it may be necessary to change visa status, and/or discuss other options with an immigration attorney. Please start by connecting with your OISS advisor.

In some cases, OISS has been able to petition the U.S. State Department to make a special exception and allow Short Term Scholars to change to J-1 Research Scholars, which allow for more time. Please contact your adviser directly to discuss options. To process this type of request, OISS would need evidence of:

• An extended Yale academic appointment
• An explanation of how the research or teaching continues the original objective
• Extended funding at the same minimum amounts
• Extended health insurance
• Evidence that travel home is not possible at this time
• A payment of $367 to the U.S. State Department (paid by the department or the scholar)

If you are working from your home in Connecticut, please check with your department to make sure you are still permitted to work remotely. This may also need to be approved by the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. If you are working remotely in the U.S. but not in Connecticut your department may need to obtain approval from the out-of-state work location committee.

If you are working from outside the U.S., please check with your department to determine how long this arrangement may continue. You must contact your adviser to report that you are working remotely from outside the U.S. in order to keep your J record active. On July 29th, 2020 the U.S. State Department stated that Yale, as an Exchange Visitor J-1 Program Sponsor, “… may keep an exchange visitor’s SEVIS record “active” until the exchange visitor is able to return to the United States to continue with his or her original program objectives…”. Any current J-1 scholar (the above accommodation does not apply to new scholars who have not yet started at Yale) working from outside the U.S. must have their department obtain approval from the out-of-state work location committee.

Yale departments submit request for new scholars using our OISS Connect system. Scholars are then invited to enter their information. A DS-2019 is created and mailed out to the new scholar.

You may enter the U.S. with a valid J-1 visa (Canadians are exempt) up until the start date listed on the DS-2019 Form in Section 3. After that date the airport Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents have discretion whether or not to allow you to enter the U.S. If you will be arriving after that start date, please contact your Yale department, and they will request that a new form be sent to you from OISS. 

Please wait until you have received your DS-2019 form before booking your flight or making your appointment at a U.S. consulate. Please check with your Yale department about any arrival plans, as well as the self-quarantine protocols.

If your arrival to the U.S. will be later than the start date on Section 3 of your DS-2019, then OISS needs to provide you with a new form. Please contact your Yale department, and they will request a new form.

As long as the J visa has not expired by the time you enter the U.S. you do not need to apply to a U.S. embassy for a new J visa.

At present the university does not allow new scholars (never been at Yale) to begin their Yale appointment from outside the U.S. There may be exceptions to this policy, so please check with your host department directly.

Yes, please notify your Yale department, and send an email to Nathan Duddles.

If you are arriving for the first time, or returning to the Yale campus after being outside of the U.S. you are expected to self-quarantine in your home for 14 days before entering any Yale facility. Please check with your host department at Yale to learn about specific protocols and resources in your workplace. Some of the resources and procedures listed below may require your review prior to entering any Yale facilities. 

• COVID-19 Testing
• Workplace Guidance
• Daily Health Check (before entering Yale buildings)
• Yale Research Reactivation Phases
• Health and Safety Guidelines
• Faculty and Staff Expectations

In addition, please report your U.S. address and phone number and submit a New Scholar Check-in request in your OISS Connect account. If you have any questions,  email Nathan Duddles. You will be invited to attend a virtual OISS orientation once we have collected your immigration documents.

New H-1B and O-1 employees should have been contacted by their OISS adviser and completed an OISS orientation, or received orientation information. Your department should be able to assist you in completing a new I-9 Form. You will need to sign up for health insurance benefits in your first 30 days by logging in to Workday. Please contact your OISS adviser if you have any questions during your on-boarding process. Welcome to Yale!